Patrick Mahomes and LeBron James lead outrage after Bill Belichick’s ‘insane’ Hall of Fame snub

Bill Belichick has been snubbed by the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

According to a report from ESPN, which cites four sources, the eight-time Super Bowl-winning coach will not be inducted in his first year of eligibility.

Getty

In voting earlier this month, Belichick was short of the 40 out of 50 votes he needed to become a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

He took a call from a representative last Friday afternoon with the news that he won’t be inducted into Canton, Ohio, this summer.

Belichick, 73, questioned the decision, and asked an associate: ‘Six Super Bowls isn’t enough?’

He won those six rings as head coach of the New England Patriots during his 24-year tenure in Foxborough, as well as two more as defensive coordinator of the New York Giants.

ESPN report that several sources who spoke with the Tar Heels coach over the weekend described him as ‘puzzled’ and ‘disappointed’ by the snub.

The news was met with widespread shock from high-profile names within the world of football and beyond, given Belichick is regarded as one of the greatest head coaches of all-time.

Patrick Mahomes and LeBron James lead reaction to Bill Belichick snub

“Insane… don’t even understand how this could be possible,” Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who has won three Super Bowls, wrote on X.

Three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt was similarly confused.

“I can’t be reading this right,” he posted.

“This has to be some knock-off Hall of Fame or something, it can’t be the actual NFL Hall of Fame. There is not a single world whatsoever in which Bill Belichick should not be a first-ballot Hall of Famer.”

New England Patriots

Former Dallas Cowboys star Deion Sanders, who is a Hall of Famer, wrote: “The disrespect to Coach Belichick is straight out IGNORANT!

“He’s arguably the BEST NFL COACH TO EVER COACH THE GAME! How quickly we forget the impact Coach Belichick made on all of us! Wow.”

Iconic Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson urged those voters who snubbed Belichick to ‘identify’ themselves.

“PLEASE…If you did not vote for BB identify yourselves!!!” he posted on X.

“Probably too much of a coward..Hide behind your SECRET BALLOT!!!”

As an NFL coach, Belichick boasted a record of 333-178, including the playoffs. In terms of career wins, he is second to only Don Shula’s 347.

Getty

Much of that success in New England came alongside legendary quarterback Tom Brady, and team owner Robert Kraft.

The Patriots legend was considered a lock for the Hall of Fame, and according to ESPN, a source familiar with Belichick noted he thinks that ‘politics kept him out.’

The report also claims that ‘Spygate’ and ‘Deflategate’ — the two cheating scandals that emerged during New England’s championship dynasty, came up in deliberations among voters.

One voter claimed that former Buffalo Bills and Indianapolis Colts GM Bill Polian, who is both an ardent supporter of Kraft and a chief AFC rival of the team, told others he believed Belichick should ‘wait a year’ before induction as because of Spygate.

That 2007 scandal cost New England a first-round draft pick, while NFL commissioner Roger Goodell also fined the Patriots $500,000 and Belichick himself $250,000.

However, in an interview with ESPN on Tuesday night, Polian denied telling fellow voters anything of the sort.

Instead, he claimed he heard others ‘float that idea’ but insisted he didn’t agree nor disagree with the proposal.

Polian said he voted for Kraft, who is a Hall finalist for the first time after 14 years of campaigning, to get in. He added that he could not remember with 100 percent certainty if he voted for Belichick.

Getty

Despite years of success together, Kraft and Belichick’s split was unceremonious when the latter departed the Patriots in January 2024.

The Hall of Fame declined to comment on ESPN’s report of Belichick’s first-ballot snub, noting it ‘does not comment on the voting’ ahead of the official unveiling of the Class of 2026, which will come at the NFL Honors ceremony on February 5 in San Francisco.

NFL's Greatest......

Ranking the top 10......

Quarterbacks of all-time – Can anyone better Tom Brady?

Wide receivers of all-time – Does Randy Moss or Jerry Rice come out on top?

Running backs of all-time – Stacking Jim Brown, Barry Sanders, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith and more

Tight ends of all-time – How does Travis Kelce compare?

Stay up to date with the latest from the NFL across all platforms – follow our dedicated talkSPORT USA Facebook page and subscribe to our talkSPORT USA YouTube channel for all the news, exclusives, interviews and more.